Descripción
The type VII u-boat was the workhorse of the German Kriegsmarine in the Second World War. It was also the most numerous German U-boat class of the war with 709 built and the most produced submarine class in history. It enjoyed spectacular victories including the sinking of the liner SS Athenia and the aircraft carrier HMS Courageous soon after the outbreak of hostilities, which showed how vulnerable unescorted ships were against German U-boat. When U-47 sank the battleship HMS Royal Oak in Octuber 1939 inside the Royal Navy anchorage at Scapa Flow it forced the entire Home Fleet to move to temporary anchorages around the Scottish coast.
